iShares ETFs cover a broad range of asset classes, risk profiles and investment outcomes. To understand the appropriateness of this fund for your investment objective, please visit our product webpage.
Find out more about iShares Bitcoin ETF (IBIT): https://www.blackrock.com/au/products/346455/
This product is likely to be appropriate for a consumer:
• who is seeking capital growth;
• using the product for a satellite component of their portfolio;
• and with an extremely high risk/return profile
What is bitcoin?
Bitcoin is a digital asset that enables instant peer-to-peer transfer of value globally, without the need for intermediaries like banks, and at next-to-no-cost. Instead, transactions are sent using blockchain technology, a public ledger that records and verifies transactions securely.
Bitcoin’s code restricts the maximum supply of ‘coins’ at 21 million, with around 19.9 million coins currently in circulation as of October 2025.1
What themes are driving bitcoin's rapid rise?
Global money alternative
A decentralised global monetary alternative that may benefit from increasing global disorder, and declining trust in institutions and government-issued currencies.
Blockchain adoption
As the world’s leading crypto asset, the rise of bitcoin can be viewed as a general bet on increasing blockchain and digital asset adoption.
Ease of access
A bitcoin ETF enables investors to get exposure to bitcoin through the convenience of an exchange-traded fund, helping remove the operational and custody complexities of holding bitcoin directly.
Risks and considerations
Bitcoin’s volatility presents risks and challenges to many investors. From 2014 to 2024, bitcoin was the best performing among major liquid asset classes and held the top annual spot eight of those 11 years. But bitcoin was also the worst-performing asset in the other three years, demonstrating both the highs and lows of this asset.
Bitcoin performance compared with other select major asset classes
Note: Asset classes shown include major liquid asset classes available to investors. BTC represents returns calculated using Bloomberg Bitcoin Spot Price. SPX is represented by the S&P 500 Index (TR). EM is represented by the Dow Jones Emerging Markets Index (TR). AGG is represented by Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index (TR). HY is represented by Bloomberg U.S. Corporate High Yield Bond Index Value Unhedged (TR). Gold returns calculated using the spot exchange rate of gold against the U.S. dollar index. CMT is represented by Dow Jones Commodity Index (TR).
Bloomberg and BlackRock calculations, as of Sept. 30, 2025. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Index performance does not reflect any management fees, transaction costs or expenses. Indexes are unmanaged and one cannot invest directly in an index. Certain sectors and markets perform exceptionally well based on current market conditions and iShares and BlackRock Funds can benefit from that performance. Achieving such exceptional returns involves the risk of volatility and investors should not expect that such results will be repeated. Index performance does not represent actual Fund performance. For actual fund performance, please visit www.blackrock.com.au.
Since bitcoin only came online as a currency 16 years ago, it’s no surprise we’ve seen a lot of volatility in its price as market participants speculate about its future role in the global economy. This is similar to how new, disruptive companies may be perceived as a riskier investment than established ones.
As time has passed and bitcoin has continued to solidify its global presence, its volatility has notably declined along similar lines to that of mega cap tech stocks like NVIDIA, Tesla and Meta2. Given this trend, an allocation of up to 2% to bitcoin in a 60-40 portfolio can provide a diversified source of risk and return.
Bitcoin’s rolling 1-year volatility vs certain mega cap tech stocks
For illustrative purposes only. This is not a recommendation to invest in any particular financial product. Source: Bloomberg. Bitcoin represented by Bloomberg Bitcoin Spot Price volatility annualised using daily returns. For illustrative purposes only. Past performance is no guarantee of future performance. Chart shows the rolling 1-year volatility of Bitcoin juxtaposed with select mega cap companies: NVDA (NVIDIA Corporation), META (Meta Platforms Inc.), and TSLA (Tesla Inc.), showing a convergence in volatility levels over time from January 2018 to September 2025.
As the chart below illustrates, an investor with a balanced portfolio and 4% weighting to a single US megacap tech stock (such as NVIDIA) may only experience slightly less volatility than an investor with a balanced portfolio and a 2% allocation to bitcoin. However, if the bitcoin allocation is increased to 4% within that balanced portfolio, the level of risk increases considerably.
Sizing bitcoin in portfolios
Estimated contribution to risk in a 60/40 portfolio
Past performance is not a reliable indicator of current or future results. This information is not intended as a recommendation to invest in any particular asset class or strategy or as a promise - or even estimate - of future performance. Source: BlackRock Investment Institute with data from Bloomberg, December 2024. Notes: The chart shows what share of the portfolio’s total risk a 1% allocation to bitcoin in a hypothetical traditional 60-40 stock-bond portfolio would add over two-year rolling windows through different periods. It also shows the same for what share a 1% overweight to the “magnificent 7” stocks (Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla) on average would contribute to the overall risk in a hypothetical 60-40 stock-bond portfolio. Indexes used: Bloomberg Developed Markets Large and Mid Cap Index for equities, Bloomberg Global Aggregate index for bond, Bloomberg Bitcoin Spot Price for bitcoin, with weekly return data from May 2012 to July 2024.
Bitcoin as a diversified source of return
As seen in the chart below, bitcoin has shown between a low (0) and moderate (0.5) correlation with global shares over the past five years.
For this reason, adding bitcoin to a portfolio can help spread risk and may improve overall returns as it acts differently from traditional investments. Bitcoin can also offer another way to diversify alongside other asset classes like gold and alternatives.
Making a 1 to 2% allocation to bitcoin within a balanced portfolio introduces a different source of risk, while managing the asset class’s typically high volatility.
Trailing 6-month correlation: Bitcoin vs global equities
BlackRock, Bloomberg as at 31 May 2025. Based on 6-month trailing correlation of daily US dollar returns for bitcoin and global equities, as represented by the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate and MSCI World total net return.
Why invest in bitcoin ETFs?
ETFs address several key concerns for investors seeking bitcoin exposure.
Source: BlackRock as of 29 September 2025. For illustrative purposes only.
Prior to the launch of the first bitcoin ETFs several years ago, investors typically accessed bitcoin through a ‘wallet’, or software application storing their digital keys to access cryptocurrency. Wallets can be either hot (with an internet connection) or cold (with no connection).
ETFs provide investors with a convenient, simple and liquid vehicle to access bitcoin, that can sit alongside their other listed investments. It also removes investors from the role of ‘custodian’ of their bitcoin investment, and the operational complexities that may come with that.
Additionally, investors may choose to tap into cryptocurrency through other less direct means, like crypto-mining stocks, crypto equity funds or crypto futures. Bitcoin ETFs, in contrast, give direct exposure to the spot price of bitcoin itself, which has consistently outperformed these other options.3
Despite being a relatively new product, bitcoin ETFs have rapidly raised assets, with global industry market cap now totalling around US$160 billion.4 As the world’s largest spot bitcoin ETF provider, iShares manages $80 billion of these assets.5
